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Draconia
Land of the Dragonborn Capital: Rueloon. Ruler: His Supreme Draconic Majesty Au Tianlong Galahad warns: when dealing with Dragonborn, think of this word: HONOR. The majority of the population of Draconia are the dragonborn, then dwarves, halflings, humans, then a light scattering of other humanoid races. Elves are an oddity. The dragonborn and dwarves are ancient allies: they share a love of mountains, metals, strong drink, and honor. The dragonborn are lizard-like humanoids who are covered in colored scales and horns of all different colors. The scales glisten like an iridescent polished metal, and you can tell they take great pride in the colors and conditions of their scales, as whenever they seems to have some idle time they are always preening. Some have wings, some don’t. There is a copious amount of gold and silver jewelry that everyone wears, and it’s in a more gaudy and intricate style than the jewelry of Koden Kal. Rings, bracelets, gilding their horns or talons - the dragonborn love to show off their gold. Galahad’s golden armor, with its platinum inlays and silver trim, was certainly made in Draconia and you can tell the dragonborn give him a lot of respect for it - as well for the sigils indicating accomplishment and clan association. Everyone knows that the best armor and weapons are made in Draconia. Their clothing choices are entirely functional or ceremonial - it seems they have no concept of wearing cloth for fashion. The dragonborn who are on guard duty are wearing armor, the ones preparing food wear an apron, and the ones walking through the streets waving incense around wear priestly vestments, but otherwise the dragonborn go around wearing jewelry and nothing else. It’s hard to tell the difference between the genders. Best you can tell, females are smaller and more slender. You hear draconic and dwarven spoken frequently around you. Draconic is thought to be one of the oldest languages and is often used in the study of magic. The Language sounds harsh to most other creatures and includes numerous hard consonants and sibilants. The architecture is mainly stone, brick, clay, and mortar. You notice that the exterior of all the buildings are made of materials that are not flammable. Inside, the buildings are wide and spacious and the layout of the city is sprawling and spread out. All the buildings that are two stories or higher have a balcony, and you can see some of the dragonborn are sunbathing on mats set outside. Everyone walks around with a wide berth, and when they see someone coming toward them even 50 ft out, they subtly alter their path as to not brush against each other. Government Draconia follows a feudalistic system of governance, in which His Supreme Draconic Majesty Au Tianlong (HSDM) holds all the lands and is the ultimate authority. Under that is each clan leader, who controls an area of the country and is tasked with its protection and stewardship. Clan members are the warrior class, who follow the orders of the clan leader. The majority of the population are the vassals to clan leaders that are obliged to work on their lord's land and give him homage, labor, and a share of the produce, notionally in exchange for military protection. For the most part the individual villages are allowed a larger degree of independence than other lands. Do as you will, so long as you honor HSDM and make your rice quota. Draconia borders the Badlands to the north, the Osirian Desert to the west, and Human kingdoms elsewhere. As well, monsters are known to spring up within its borders. All villagers are expected to learn and practice martial arts to some extent. For clan members, you dedicate your life to it. A villager that shows potential in battle will be relieved from farming and trained more rigorously. The best of those will be able to join a Clan and serve in Draconia’s protection. To devote one’s life to serving HSDM is the highest honor, especially in the military or the bureaucracy. Scholastically, particularly promising individuals might be sponsored by their village or clan to be tutored until adulthood in hopes that they will pass the Civil Service Exam and be able to work in Draconia’s bureaucracy. Through them, honor and riches will surely flow back to their town of origin. Monastic temples operate somewhat independently outside the system. They don’t generally fall under a clan; though they still answer to His Supreme Draconic Majesty. Religious temples have a complicated relationship. They are tolerated as long as their conduct does not cause disharmony, and are endorsed when their goals align with HSDM. As a draconic god of justice, nobility, protection, and honor, Bahamut is the most endorsed of all. Clerics are expected to use their divine gifts for the glory of HSDM - he does not like when his subjects prioritize another being over himself, even a god. (Side note: in Erulastiel, worshipping Bahamut would make people consider you a cult member. Such people have the suspicion of violating the Natural Order for advocating abolition.) There isn’t an official program in Draconia to help with escaped slaves; any organized help they get is mainly from the Church of Bahamut. The ones who end up there generally get integrated into communities as a vassal under protection of a Dragonborn clan. It is much easier for a halfling to get integrated into Draconia than a tiefling. (Escaped Tiefling slaves from Koden Kal tend to go south to Forcher Harbor.) Halflings are particularly valued by the dragonborn for help in farming. For a 7’ tall dragonborn, harvesting rice paddies or digging up carrots is backbreaking work. To a 3’ halfling it’s much easier. A typical story of an escaped halfling slave from Koden Kal is that they were spirited away by an agent of the Bluebell Society to the border of Draconia, where they were taken in by a member of the Church of Bahamut. After which they are taken in by a halfling village deeper within the country. Slave catchers have kidnapped and smuggled escapees back out, but it’s a rare occurrence. Only the most valuable slaves are worth the risk. For the most part, once you’re past Draconia’s borders you’re in the clear. The journey across the hundreds of miles to the border is the hard part. There is the faster way through the desert, though it is more dangerous. Or the longer way, though you’re more likely to be caught. Slavery outright is banned in Draconia, but in certain villages the condition is not unlike it. Much like the nobility of Koden Kal, some clan leaders are more cruel and demanding in their food & production quotas than others. Geopolitics There is political tension between Draconia and other slave-holding countries for this sanctuary practice. Draconia relishes in taking resources away from Erulastiel, manpower especially. Though they will host refugees that come to Draconia’s borders, there is no government outreach to the enslaved. Dragonborn consider elves to be dishonorable and views diplomatic relations with them with suspicion. HSDM has long watched the lands of Erulastiel spread and devour its neighbors over the millenia. In the romance of three kingdoms (Elves, Dragonborn, and Human Lands), he has played a long game to keep their ambitions in check. Draconia holds a close relationship with the dwarven Kingdoms Under the Mountains. Relations with the various Human kingdoms is largely stable. The Path of Shadows Many of the monasteries are indeed centers of enlightenment where monks congregate in search of self-perfection. But not all. There is a reason the monstic temples are outside of the system of Honor that governs Draconian culture. There are times when a knife in the night is more effective than a thousand warriors, and HSDM is wise enough to know when the knife is needed. The assassins who undergo training in subterfuge, deceit, and silent murder are called Night Claws. Though in the common tongue, they are called ninja. For those that HSDM sends to sew chaos in his enemies’ cities, the five-headed dragon goddess Tiamat is the deity of choice. Temples will adapt their style of combat to represent an aspect of Tiamat’s power. The Jade Fang Temple follows the lessons of Tiamat’s green head in their use and mastery of poison. Azure Sky ninja heed the blue head, and are fleet of foot and will kill their target in the time between a flash of lightning and when you hear the thunderclap.